Tredje AP fonden Sells 6,000 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Tredje AP fonden cut its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 48.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,406 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 6,000 shares during the quarter. Tredje AP fonden’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,483,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cetera Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 119.6% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 39,497 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $8,993,000 after buying an additional 21,508 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 102.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,480 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,842,000 after acquiring an additional 6,329 shares during the period. Sciencast Management LP purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,881,000. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board lifted its position in American Express by 15.5% during the first quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 35,763 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $8,143,000 after purchasing an additional 4,800 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 49.0% in the first quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 279,106 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $63,550,000 after purchasing an additional 91,760 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AXP. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Compass Point began coverage on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 price target for the company. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $221.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of American Express from $240.00 to $268.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $230.78.

American Express Price Performance

AXP stock opened at $268.95 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $249.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $236.97. American Express has a one year low of $140.91 and a one year high of $271.49. The company has a market capitalization of $193.46 billion, a PE ratio of 22.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.23. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The business had revenue of $16.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.89 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Company Profile

American Express Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as integrated payments company in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the Asia Pacific, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America, Canada, the Caribbean, and Internationally. It operates through four segments: U.S. Consumer Services, Commercial Services, International Card Services, and Global Merchant and Network Services.